There鈥檚 plenty happening near Matt Pettinger鈥檚 downtown Victoria office, where the din of power tools, teetering construction cranes and traffic detours offer signs that things aren鈥檛 about to calm down any time soon.
Step outside the View Street headquarters of 鈥檚 commercial real estate brokerage firm, and you鈥檒l walk past a smorgasbord of new restaurants, fashionable boutiques and specialty shops of all shapes and flavours. Stick around for a moment, Pettinger says, and you鈥檙e bound to meet a familiar face or two.
Pettinger isn鈥檛 one to sit idle. At 15 years of age, he hit the ice for the first time with the Victoria Salsa hockey club. The young left winger rapidly rose through the junior ranks. By the 2000-01 season, he鈥檇 turned pro and was playing among the world鈥檚 best with the National Hockey League鈥檚 . Pettinger went on to play with the Tampa Bay Lightning and before finishing his career in Europe.
Hockey played a prominent role in molding his strong will, a sense of dedication and unrelenting work ethic. Life in professional hockey, he adds, requires a strong sense of self, a keen resolve and, perhaps surprisingly, strong relationship skills. Nobody likes a bad seed, and bad blood among players can easily sink the most talent-laden teams.
鈥淎t the minor and junior league level, I was usually one of the better players on the team, but at the National Hockey League level there are a lot of guys who can do the same things you can do and so the question becomes: 鈥榟ow do you differentiate yourself?鈥� It鈥檚 about working hard and not getting discouraged and coming back from adversity. A deal goes south for whatever reason in my line of work now and it鈥檚 crucial to pick yourself up and be ready for the next opportunity,鈥� he says.
鈥淚鈥檝e only been [in real estate] for two and a half years, but there鈥檚 no deal that鈥檚 the same, and that鈥檚 no different than in hockey. You come in as a rookie and learn from different situations and different environments. You learn constantly, and it translates into the world of commercial real estate. I鈥檓 always gaining market knowledge.鈥�
Pettinger鈥檚 penchant for taking walks around the neighbourhood, however, is something he credits to his father, Rick Pettinger, a partner and president of NKF Devencore who has established himself as a well-known and top-producing commercial realtor over the past 25 years.
It was Rick who offered his son the pragmatic piece of advice early on in his career.
鈥淢y dad always tells me, 鈥業f you鈥檙e ever in the office and have nothing to do, go for a walk, because you never know who you鈥檙e going to run into on the street.鈥欌�� he says. 鈥淚鈥檝e definitely taken that message and used it. You go for a coffee and, next thing you know, you run into someone who wants to sell a building or is looking for office or retail space to lease.鈥�
Regardless of your field, it鈥檚 a smart piece of advice in a town where networking is often as simple as walking down the block. For Pettinger, the opportunity to carry out a rewarding post-hockey career and settle down with his spouse, Chelsea, and the couple鈥檚 two young children, is what makes coming back home so sweet.
鈥淭he amount of hotel rooms I鈥檝e stayed in over the years playing hockey is ridiculous,鈥� he says. 鈥淲here else would you rather live than Victoria, British Columbia? I鈥檝e been to lots of places around the world and been to a lot of beautiful places in Europe but when I tell them where I鈥檓 from, whether it鈥檚 Vancouver or Victoria, they gush about it. We鈥檙e very fortunate on that end. It鈥檚 nice to be from Victoria and it鈥檚 a good spot to call home.鈥�
He may have spent much of his childhood at the rink, but he鈥檇 always find time to visit the resort overlooking Tofino鈥檚 Cox Bay created by his grandparents Bill and Joan in 1973. The beach has become synonymous with Canada鈥檚 gnarly cold-water surfing culture and some of the country鈥檚 best hotels, including the and the Resort. The Pettinger family sold their 41-acre in early 2015.
鈥淚t was, and still is, a special piece of property for our family, but my father and his two brothers felt it was the right time to move on.鈥�
The sale hasn鈥檛 weakened Matt鈥檚 bonds to the region. Firmly settled on the West Coast, far from the worries and headaches associated with uncertainties of looming trade deadlines, moves across the continent and living out of hotel rooms, Pettinger is concentrating on replicating the fond memories of youth for his own children.
He keeps in shape by playing casual drop-in hockey with friends at Esquimalt鈥檚 and, as an avid golfer, concedes that he enjoys spending time at the links at the when gets a break from dad duty.
鈥淚 try to get out and play golf as much as I can but when you have young kids your life revolves around them鈥� he says. 鈥淔ree time is sort of limited right now, but I enjoy every minute of being a dad .鈥�
He may no longer be rubbing elbows with Alexander Ovechkin and Roberto Luongo or playing with Canada鈥檚 best at the World Junior Championship, but he鈥檚 glad and proud to be up early to drive his kids to school, get his daughter to dance class on time, accompany the family on the birthday party circuit or just head out for a nice long walk.
- Story by Sean McIntyre/Photographs by Lia Crowe/Boulevard Magazine
Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
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